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subordinated to the direction and description contained in these articles. If Clarence Channel, which lies immediately east of Prince of Wales Island is taken, there is an exact conformity to the description. You may ascend north from the southernmost point of Prince of Wales Island along Clarence Channel, but you cannot ascend north from the southernmost point of Prince of Wales Island along Portland Channel. You can ascend to a point on Clarence Channel as far as the point on the continent where it strikes the 56th degree of latitude. cannot ascend Portland Channel to a point on the continent where it strikes the 56th degree of north latitude, because Portland Channel does not reach that far north. The difference between drawing the boundary from Portland Channel and from Clarence Channel is this-the boundary upon the mainland commences where the 56th degree of north latitude cuts the shore in the one instance, and in the other it commences at a point at the head of Portland Channel which falls short of the place designated as the place of beginning.

By Article IV, the line is to be drawn so as to leave the whole of Prince of Wales Island to Russia. If a due east line is to be drawn from the southernmost point of the island to the entrance at Portland Channel, these words "leaving the whole of Prince of Wales Island to Russia are surplusage, because a due east line would not only leave the whole of the Prince of Wales Island to Russia, but would leave several other large islands, of which no mention is made, lying between this island and the mainland. If Clarence Channel is taken, there is an obvious reason for providing in the treaty, the words, that the whole of the Prince of Wales Island shall be left

to Russia, because a line ascending from the southern most point north, would cut off the southeastern portion of the island, but these words have no proper place in the treaty if the line starting from the southernmost point of Prince of Wales Island is to be extended eastward to the entrance of Portland Channel, as it would not be a line "ascending north" from the southernmost point of Prince of Wales Island. It will be observed that this qualification found in Article IV of the description given of the limitary line in Article III is unaccountable, if a line is first to be drawn eastward from the Prince of Wales Island to the entrance to Portland Channel. Why should this portion of the description have been omitted altogether? It is, I think, clear from the wording of the treaty, that the use of the words "Portland Channel" cannot refer to the body of water commonly so designated, and the whole of this part of the description of the boundary is inapplicable.

Let any intelligent reader with a map before him, undertake to draw the line from the description which the treaty furnishes. If he begins at the southernmost point of Prince of Wales Island, which lies in 54 degrees, 40 minutes of north latitude, he cannot from that point ascend to the north along Portland Channel. The name of the channel through which the line is drawn are words subordinate to the direction, description and relation of the line so drawn to the starting point, which determines, in my opinion, through what waters the line is to so ascend that the whole of the Prince of Wales Island is to remain in Russia. It is assumed in the words of description, found in the treaty, that the line that ascends to the north along the channel, can do so as far as to the point of the continent where it strikes

the 56th degree of north latitude. This is a point, upon the shore, in which the boundary upon the mainland is to begin, and so the words are wholly inapplicable to Portland Channel, as it falls short, by several miles, of extending to that degree of latitude. The channel which lies immediately east of Prince of Wales Island, and through which the descriptive words of the treaty requires the boundary to be drawn does so extend, so that the geographical conditions fit in with the description in the one case, and do not in the other.

By the third article the line of demarcation is to follow the summit of the mountains, situated parallel to the coast as far as the intersection of the 141st degree of west longitude; and the fourth article provides that whenever the summit of the mountains, which extend in a direction parallel to the coast from the 56th degree of north latitude, shall prove to be at the distance of more than ten marine leagues from the coast, the limit between the British possessions and the line of coast which is to belong to Russia shall be formed by a line parallel to the windings of the coast, and which shall never exceed the distance of ten marine leagues therefrom.

It is too clear to require argument that the limitary line was to follow the coast range and the summit of that coast range, whether high or low was to be the boundary, when it was not more than ten leagues from the coast. In many places inlets extend through canyons through the mountains, and so much of each of those inlets as would be cut off, by a line drawn from the summit of the mountain upon the one side, to the summit of the mountain upon the other, is Canadian territory. The line cannot be removed urther inland, because there may be a gap in the

mountains into which an arm of the sea extends. The coast range approaches these inlets on each side, in most cases, near the waters of the ocean. When you pass the Lynn Inlet, it will be found that the coast range embraces peaks from 10,000 to 18,000 feet high, and it does seem to me preposterous to contend that the provisions of the treaty can be applied by drawing a line in the rear of those mountains, as certainly would be done, if the boundary passed around the head of Lynn Inlet.

It is, I think, manifest that the framers of the treaty assumed, that harbours, inlets, and arms of the sea, would be found, when the boundary was drawn, within British territory, and certain provisions of the treaty were entered into upon this assumption.

Article VI provides that the subjects of Her Britannic Majesty from whatever quarter they may arrive, whether from the ocean, or from the interior of the continent, shall, for ever enjoy the right of navigation freely, and without any hindrance whatever, all the rivers and streams, which in their course towards the Pacific Ocean, may cross the line of demarcation on the line of the coast. As some of those rivers flow into Behring Sea, it is perfectly obvious, that the contracting parties assumed that the navigation of that sea was open to British vessels

By Article VII for a period of ten years, the vessels of the two powers, and of their subjects respectively shall mutually be at liberty to frequent all the inland seas, the gulfs, havens and creeks on the coast mentioned in Article III. The coast mentioned in Article III is not the entire coast of the continent, but the coast north of 54 degrees 40 minutes.

By Article X every British or Russian vessel navigating the Pacific Ocean, which may be compelled by storms or by accident to take shelter in the ports of the respective parties shall be at liberty to refit therein, to provide itself with all necessary stores and to put to sea again without paying any other than port and lighthouse dues, which shall be the same as those paid by national vessels.

This is not a temporary arrangement but a permanent one which each party has within the ports of the other.

It has been contended by some of the United States press, that the waters belonging to Great Britain herein referred to, are those that lie south of the 54th degree 40 minutes of north latitude, but this is not so. Those territories were in dispute between Great Britain and the United States, and with reference to them no compact was entered into in the treaty between Russia and Great Britain. What is entered into is the establishment of a boundary north of 54 degrees 40 minutes, and it is with reference to this boundary, separating the territories of Russia from the territories of His Britannic Majesty, that all the provisions of the treaty referred,-Russia made no claim, in this treaty, to any territories further south. She set up no pretensions to any privileges further south; what was being settled was the dispute between Great Britain and Russia in respect to sovereign rights north of 54 degrees 40 minutes north latitude. The subjects of Great Britain were without any hindrance whatever to have liberty of navigating freely all the rivers and streams which in their course towards the Pacific Ocean may cross the boundary line, the line of demarcation, as set out in